Development of new methodologies to assess the structural integrity of the grouted joint of a 10MW wind turbine substructure

Monopiles are currently the most commonly used substructure in the offshore wind market due to their ease of installation in shallow to medium waters. The monopile and the transition piece are connected by a grouted joint. Fatigue and corrosion are two of the most important degradation mechanisms in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Volume 1: Offshore Technology
Main Authors: Santos, Benjamin, Rodriguez, Alvaro, Fernandez, David, Gintautas, Tomas, Sørensen, John Dalsgaard, Natarajan, Anand, NJOMO WANDJI, Wilfried
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: American Society of Mechanical Engineers 2018
Subjects:
Online Access:https://vbn.aau.dk/da/publications/30e64ff4-ab92-44bf-bb26-096e711d8aaa
https://doi.org/10.1115/OMAE2018-77628
Description
Summary:Monopiles are currently the most commonly used substructure in the offshore wind market due to their ease of installation in shallow to medium waters. The monopile and the transition piece are connected by a grouted joint. Fatigue and corrosion are two of the most important degradation mechanisms in this type of support structures. These mechanisms increase the costs and compromise the reliability of the structures. The development of new models and methodologies for the analysis of these degradation mechanisms is crucial. For this reason, a methodology to analyze the behavior of grouted joints has been developed considering the effect of corrosion on the steel parts of the grouted joints, along with the consideration of stiffness degradation of the concrete structure and the reliability of the joint under fatigue. One type of grouted joint connection is considered: the conventional cylindrical joint with shear keys. Fully coupled load simulations are made to determine the fatigue resistance and ultimate load resistance of the joint.